Have you noticed all of the new web sites with homes for sale? It has to be confusing for buyers. Last night I hopped from web site to web site and found that each had a different number of homes for sale for the twin cities area.
Real estate web sites are popping up all over as internet companies and media companies enter the arena. Real estate is still a local business and it is the local web sites that have all the listings on them. Web sites like my home search and the web sites of local real estate companies have data fed to them from the Regional MLS.
Our MLS has all types of homes listed on it including foreclosures, fixer uppers, investment properties, lots and land and some commercial properties and is still a home buyers best bet for getting the greatest amount of information about homes for sale. Maps, pictures, virtual tours and other information are provided with each listing. There is also an open house directory and information about all homes that have been sold in the last two years. The data is from a reliable source.
Using the internet for research when buying a home is a real time saver allowing buyers to compare prices and weed out the homes they don’t want to see.
My listings are advertised on 13 different web sites, and on individual web sites that are created for each property, and on the national web sites too. This is necessary because my competitors market their listings through multiple web sites. The strategy impresses my clients but does it help sell their homes?
How many web sites do we need? For sellers and their agents does having properties on multiple web sites speed up the sales process? How does a buyer figure out which web site to use? Should anyone be allowed to set up a real estate web site and use homes for sale as bait to "capture" and sell "leads"?
Real estate web sites should be required to disclose the source of their data and the purpose of the site. I don’t understand "national web sites" with home searches. Do buyers search for property in several states? Who is responsible for data integrity? Not all local MLS’s share their data with the national sites. How does the consumer know what is missing? Some national web sites have 25% of the listings in St. Paul, some have a few hundred. All web sites are national and international if they are on the world wide web.
I typed the phrase "home search" in Google and came up with: 4,300,000,000, listings for home search. (0.16 seconds). Is each one of these sites reliable?
I think I am confused too. Web sites that are being used for research should help not confuse.
I hear you. As a newer agent (& fairly tech savvy), I am often completely confused at what to use and what is the best for my client. It’s too many. I get a website with my company, with my mls, with FAR and like ten others. It is great to have options but if it is confusing to me what about the customers?
It’s a mine field out there! We have a page on our site titled – Online Home Search Wastes Your Time – http://www.theharperteam.com/tools/local-property-search/
It’s true – people spend hours searching when their agent could plug in the criteria for the home they are looking for and the client would get individual emails on all properties matching their criteria.
Why is anyone spending time with online search? – they don’t want to feel hassled, they want to be in control, they want to be entertained.
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Jamey – that is the point each site confuses and many mislead, like MLSonline, which is not the MLS, or home gain which sells leads and I could go on and on.
John – I get why people want to search on their own and I think they should be able to. It would be nice if the sites had to site there sources and report how much of the actual data they have, then consumers could decide which site they like best and search.
You know, I just reread my comment above and now it sounds silly. I wanted to clear up the fact that I am NOT confused about what to do FOR my client but how to service “potential” clients in regards to online searches or online services. We have so many services that we can provide to potential online customers that some times it’s overwhelming knowing which service is the best and will give them the best results. I agree Teresa & John I think often the old fashion way works the best. Standard online searches that are currently out there just don’t do clients justice. Most buyers have very specific needs and often they call me with MLS#s from online searches from properties that don’t even match what they really need. I always tell my clients, look online but more often than not, I have the best data at my fingertips!!
For the Twin Cities and adjacent areas I’ve found Edina Realty’s MLS presentation to be the most usable. Easy to set search criteria and clean, fast page display. Marketing elements are not intrusive which is a problem with many real-estate listings sites. (Another thing I would discourage on sites is automatic loading of audio and animated flash files — let the user decide if they want to hear/play after they’ve been intrigued by the still photos.)*
If you’re an agent and you’re not associated with Edina Realty, I suppose you wouldn’t want to send your clients there, but — it is all about the service, right?
*Full disclosure: I work on a Web site by day.
–john
…thank your for breathing life into my blog.
Would you like a twelve-pack with that cup of tea?
John P – I do tell my clients about the Edina Realty web site. it is the best in the twin cities. I encourage people to use which ever site they find the easiest to use.If they are using the real estate company we sites at least I know they are getting good information. I also send them links to listings that I did up through my MLS searches.
It seems like we’re seeing the growing pains of real estate 2.0 in the sense that no one seems to know exactly where it’s going, but everyone wants to be in it and get a piece of the pie. In the end, only the fittest will survive, but that may be a ways away.
One thing I’ve noticed is that most of the sites are not focused on actually marketing or selling property, rather generating traffic for money and selling leads to agents. Perhaps it’s because the sites are not created by those in real estate or the focus is not on the greater good.
Hopefully, that will change soon…
Hi Teresa,
Interesting topic – food for thought. I’ve had clients come to me after doing their own research and my only job was to confirm what they already knew. I’ve had other clients do their own research and come to me with completely unrealistic expectations about the market &/or their home. My job in each case is to offer them my expert opinions and advice, and they’re free to accept it or seek another opinion.
I think it’s just like any other business; the more research you (as a consumer) can do, the more prepared you are to make a good decision, examine alternatives, and ask intelligent questions. Don’t we all try to figure out what’s wrong with us on webmd.com before going to see the doctor?
I love this conversation. I think the comments are better than the post. Our industry is changing rapidly making it hard for realty pros and consumers alike.
I think any Realtor who is on the internet and doesn’t have a link to the mls (idx broker reciprocity) is seriously missing the boat. If 80% of home buyers are starting their search on the net and anyone of them lands on an agents site, to not display the single most important thing to a home buyer, current listings, is outrageous. Like you Teresa, I spend hours reviewing other sites and it baffles me how many realtor sites I visit that only show me their one or two listings. What a waste of time and money for an agent to have a web site and no MLS link.
More is not always better. In the markets we operate (Central America) there is no MLS or central database of property, so the only way you can get a handle on what is available is to trawl through all the real estate websites, individually. You’ll find considerable overlap but also inconsistent information. Some websites are filled with out of date listings or too-good-to-be-true ‘teaser’ properties just to get the enquiry. Unlike the US, buyers don’t have the option of focussing their search to sites that link to the MLS.